Why many dental clinic pages underperform

How SwiftSchema helps

How it works

What is Dentist structured data?

Dentist is a LocalBusiness subtype for dental clinics. Marking up your location page with accurate address, phone, hours, and service context helps search engines understand your clinic and present more helpful details to patients.

Eligibility & Status

Dentist (a LocalBusiness subtype) acts as a foundational signal for local understanding. It’s “limited” for direct rich results; eligibility depends on content quality, policy compliance, and specific Google surfaces.

Essential schema fields for dental practices

1. name
   — match the signage and Google Business Profile (“Smile Studio Dental”, “Dr. Lee DDS”).
2. address
   — include suite numbers and precise PostalAddress details.
3. telephone
   — list both main and emergency numbers via
   contactPoint
   if you offer after-hours support.
4. openingHoursSpecification
   — specify general hours and special hours (weekend appointments, lunch closures).
5. priceRange
   — optional; give a high-level idea of cost (“$$”).
6. image
   — link to exterior/interior photos or staff headshots to humanize the listing.
7. areaServed
   /
   serviceType
   — highlight neighborhoods or specialties (family dentistry, orthodontics, implants).
8. aggregateRating
   /
   review
   — only include if you have compliant first-party reviews.
9. sameAs
   — reference authoritative profiles (ADA membership, Healthgrades, Yelp, Google Maps).

Content prep checklist

• Describe your services (cleaning, whitening, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry) with headings and bullet lists.
• Introduce dentists and hygienists, including credentials (DDS, DMD, board certifications).
• Provide patient experience details: insurance accepted, payment plans, sedation options.
• Include call-to-action buttons for booking (phone, online scheduler) and note emergency care availability.
• Add photos of the office, equipment, or before/after results (with consent) to build trust.
• Outline safety protocols or specialized equipment (CBCT, Invisalign scanners).

JSON-LD patterns

Minimal location page

Location with services, emergency contact, and ratings

Implementation workflow

1. Create/verify a dedicated page per location (even if multiple dentists share it).
2. Generate Dentist JSON‑LD with complete address, phone, hours, and service notes.
3. Integrate contact options via
   contactPoint
   to differentiate general questions vs emergencies.
4. Embed the schema once per page, ensuring no duplicate LocalBusiness markup from other plugins.
5. Complement with FAQ about services or insurance, and ItemList for treatment menus if applicable.
6. Validate via Rich Results Test and monitor Search Console for local-business warnings.

Multi-location and specialty considerations

• Use LocalBusiness or Dentist schema for each office page; link back to the main organization via
  parentOrganization
  .
• Highlight specialties per location (e.g., one office focuses on orthodontics, another on pediatric dentistry).
• For hospital-affiliated dental clinics, mention the hospital’s Organization schema and cross-link to their contact info.
• If you offer mobile or concierge services, specify
  areaServed
  and mention the mobile nature in the copy.

Reviews and compliance

• Follow local regulations regarding testimonials (some jurisdictions restrict displaying patient testimonials).
• Use first-party review collection (surveys, post-visit emails) if you plan to include AggregateRating.
• Display disclaimers as required (“Results may vary”) and keep dates of reviews so schema matches current testimonials.
• Don’t copy third-party star ratings into your structured data unless you collected the reviews.

Operations and patient experience details

• Include
  acceptsReservations
  if you take online bookings.
• Reference emergency procedures (“After-hours dental emergency line”) in both content and schema via
  contactPoint
  .
• Note languages spoken (
  availableLanguage
  ) when relevant; diversity can influence patient selection.
• Highlight accessibility features (wheelchair entrance, braille signage).

Troubleshooting checklist

• Incomplete address: ensure city, region, postal code, and country exist. Add suite numbers in
  streetAddress
  .
• Misformatted hours: use
  Mo-Fr 08:00-17:00
  format or
  openingHoursSpecification
  .
• NAP inconsistencies: sync phone/address across header, footer, Google Business Profile, and schema.
• Duplicate schema: disable extra LocalBusiness widgets if they conflict.
• Stale content: update when doctors leave, hours change, or services expand (e.g., adding implants).

On-page parity checklist

• NAP consistency: Name, Address, Phone match across page, footer, schema, and Google Business Profile.
• Hours on-page match
  openingHours
  /
  openingHoursSpecification
  .
• Services and specialties listed in copy align with
  serviceType
  (if used).
• Ratings shown to users match
  aggregateRating
  ; only include if policy-compliant.
• Booking/CTA links on-page match any URLs referenced in schema (if added).
• Images used in schema are actually present on the page and publicly accessible.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using one page for many locations: create one dedicated, indexable page per location with unique NAP.
• Stale hours/phones: keep schema and on-page content in lockstep with business profile data.
• Adding AggregateRating without real reviews: include only if you have genuine, policy-compliant reviews you display.
• Missing suite numbers: add them to
  streetAddress
  to avoid ambiguity.
• Conflicting LocalBusiness plugins: ensure only one authoritative JSON-LD block per location page.

Troubleshooting and validation

• Rich Results Test warnings: Check required address fields and hours formatting; ensure the page is indexable.
• Map/knowledge panel mismatch: Align with your Google Business Profile data; fix NAP inconsistencies.
• Images not detected: Use absolute URLs; avoid blocking resources. Prefer WebP/JPEG with defined dimensions.
• Emergency contact missing: If you offer emergency care, surface it on-page and in
  contactPoint
  .

Common Errors & Fixes

• Incomplete address: provide city, region, postal code, and country.
• Misformatted hours: follow the recognized
  openingHours
  format or
  openingHoursSpecification
  object.
• Out-of-date contact info: keep telephone and hours current in both content and markup.
• Self-serving reviews: include ratings only with policy-compliant, genuine reviews.